Saugus Cafe Needs Your Help

The Saugus Cafe, which has been in business for 132 years, is in danger of closing. With the ongoing crisis, business has slowed and restrictions are in place making it tougher than ever. This restaurant is a part of the history of Santa Clarita and US 99. It is located at 25861 Railroad Avenue (formerly San Fernando Road) in Santa Clarita, California. As a kid, I always enjoyed going there and getting a seat near the window so I could watch the trains go by. I was last able to stop there in January 2020. It isn’t truly a Ridge Route trip without it, as it is the LAST place that is still around that dates to that era AND is along the route.

If you’d like to help save this historic restaurant and learn more, KHTS radio has a detailed article here. The Saugus Cafe has also started a “GoFundMe” account. If you are in the area, please stop by the restaurant and show your support! We need places like this to keep going, as without we lose a part of our heritage and a connection to the past.

This article was originally posted on the
Historic Highway 99 Association of California’s website.

Fundraising Time

Greetings All!

It is that time of year again and we need your help. We are looking to raise some funds to cover basic operating expenses, such as our PO BOX and website. At this time, we would like to raise $300, which will cover us for a while. Once the current crisis is over, we will be able to do more fundraising through our CUTRR events, which will help not only keep those events going, but help with our fight to get the road open and maintained.

We are a 501c3 Tax-Exempt organization, so your donations will be tax deductible. Any amount helps. To donate, you may either:

A) Send a check payable to the RRPO to:

RRPO
P.O. Box 391
Torrance, CA 90508-0391

B) Paypal via:

C) Become a member!

Thank you for your time and your continued interest in the Ridge Route.

New YouTube Channel

We have a new YouTube channel, where we will post videos on all sorts of topics, such as our CUTRR events, roadway conditions, and much more. It will also have links to videos by others, which showcase the roadway in various states of repair as well as from different perspectives. Videos not made by the RRPO don’t necessarily reflect our views and may not contain complete or accurate information about the roadway. Please check it out and let us know if you have a video you’d like us to add to the list!

October 2020 Update

2020 is rapidly passing us by, it seems. We had hoped to be at our 3rd CUTRR by this point, preparing for another. Those are still on hold. Hoping now for early 2021, depending on many factors. The biggest is the closure on the Ridge Route until December 31, 2020. Please keep this in mind before traveling up there at this time. The roadway is closed at this time regardless of the gates being open or not.

Signage at the south end of the Ridge Route near Templin Highway.

As a part of the Lake Fire preparations, the Ridge Route was used as a contingency fire line. This resulted in brush and rocks being cleared from the entire roadway from Sandberg to Templin Highway. Much additional work is needed to be done, such as clearing drains and a whole lot of other debris from the roadway. One culvert, just south of Kelly’s Halfway Inn, is badly damaged and the roadway is washing out at that point. This is the reason we need to get up there and do our work. Hopefully the Forest Service allows us to at least get some work done prior to the rainy season. Being a La Nina year could at least be advantageous for us in that regard.

Badly damaged Culvert #53 near Kelly’s Halfway Inn

In other news, one initiative I’d like to get started is getting Historic US 99 signage along Ridge Route Road and Castaic Road in Castaic. Having that signage there would attract more interest in the roadway and promote the town. This is still very early in the planning stages, and doesn’t supersede our efforts to get the road open.

Holding up my Historic US 99 sign at the south end of the Ridge Route (technically the road to the right, Neely St) in Castaic.

Remember, if you’re interested in following our work, just click on the “Subscribe” link to the right side of the screen to get updates from this site. You can follow us on Twitter (@ridgeroute99) and Instagram (@ridgerouteorg) as well.

Forest Closure Order

The Ridge Route, from State 138 to Templin Highway is now under a Forest Closure Order due to the Lake Fire, which is set to expire on December 31, 2020. As such, travel along the roadway and any activities along it are prohibited. Please take heed of this as the fines can be pretty steep.

For further information and specific details, please use the link below.

Lake Fire Forest Closure Order 05-01-20-06